2016 Catcher Rankings

Time for some All-Star break fun: here are my very, very preliminary 2016 player rankings. I’ve done my best to list players where they’ll be eligible next year, and the free agents-to-be are listed without teams. Players with options for next year are still listed with their current teams if those options are likely to be exercised.

Along with the position rankings is a top 300 list for 2016. Click to see other preliminary 2016 rankings:

Top 300 | SP | RP | OF | 1B | 2B | SS | 3B | C | DH

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2016 Catcher Rankings

Catchers

o No Joe Mauer, no Carlos Santana and no Evan Gattis here. There isn’t even a John Jaso. As things stand now, it doesn’t look like we’ll have any leftover catcher-eligibles playing other positions. What we might have is a Schwarber. Perhaps. Absent him, this looks like the weakest catcher field in years.

o But Schwarber. Schwarber! The Cubs have me convinced that they do, in fact, see him as their long-term catcher. He still hasn’t played a single game at another position this year, suggesting that he’s probably not going to get the chance to take over as the team’s left fielder in August and September. This is something of a compromise ranking here. If I thought Schwarber would be the Cubs’ left fielder next year, I’d rank him second behind Posey. I’d even be tempted to put him there if I thought the Cubs would trade Montero and start Schwarber behind the plate on Opening Day. My guess, though, is that Montero sticks initially and Schwarber eventually gets a share of the job, maybe with occasional left field duty. Still, there’s just too much offensive upside here to put him behind more than a handful of catchers.

o I wonder how much movement there will be with young catchers this winter. The Red Sox have Swihart and Vazquez, the Mets have d’Arnaud and Plawecki, the Giants have Susac behind Posey and the Padres have Hedges behind Norris. Plus, the Braves seem to have soured on Bethancourt. The teams with catching depth will have to weigh the advantages of preserving it against potential offers from teams in need of starters. As someone who ranks players for a living, I’d like to see some trades. Swihart, Vazquez, Plawecki and Susac are all worthy of starting jobs, and it’s going to make projections difficult if the Red Sox, Mets and Giants decide to keep their stockpiles.

o Pinto was something of a tough call, given that he wasn’t much of a catcher in the first place and now he’s having concussion problems. Still, his bat is more interesting than that of most of the guys in the 15-30 range. I don’t know that it’s good enough to make him a realistic first baseman or DH, but there’s still time for him to find a niche. He might not have catcher eligibility next year, though, depending on what happens over the rest of this year.